Spectacle bridge shaper



Get 9, 1956 A. .CUTCHER SPECTACLE BRIDGE SHAPER Filed July 51, 1953 16 la 17 f5 19 A'TTOQNEM SPECTACLE BRIDGE SHAPER Annabelle Cutcher, Sun Valley, Calif. Application July 31, 195 3, Serial No. 371,663

Claims. (Cl. 81-359 This invention has for its general object to provide a device of novel form and utility as a selective size shaper for deformable spectacle nose bridges, particularly those made of organic plastic materials that may be rendered deformable by mild heating.

More specifically, the invention contemplates incorporation in a simple one-piece mandrel structure, of a succession of shouldered recesses having progressively different shapes, particularly in their transverse dimension, for receiving and forming or deforming to proper size in any given instance, a bridge piece that is pressed into a selected one of the recesses. Also contemplated is a suitable support attached to one end of the mandrel whereby the latter may be mounted for use in a horizontal position, and rendered movable, if desired, to an out of the way position when not in use.

Structurally, and in its preferred embodiment, the mandrel is made in elongated form of suitable material such as plastic, metal or wood, and is shaped to present a series of spaced transverse shoulders curving across the top and downwardly at the sides of the mandrel. These shoulders, together with the mandrel surfaces between them define a series of recesses which are rendered conveniently receptive of the bridge pieces in engagement with the shoulders, by sloping the intervening surfaces relative to the mandrel axes toward the bases of the shoulders. Thus the recesses have generally inverted U-shapes and terminate at the lower sides of the mandrel. Since the major deformation to occur in a bridge piece to be shaped is in a direction transversely of the mandrel to which it is applied, the mandrel may have substantially uniform vertical thickness and progressively varying transverse curvatures and dimensions at the recesses, all within a range suited to practical requirements.

All the various features and objects of the invention, as well as the details of a typical embodiment will be understood and further explained by reference to the accompanying drawing, in which:

Fig. 1 is a view showing the shaper mandrel and its mounting in side elevation;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary side elevation of the shaping end of the mandrel;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken on line 44 of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary plan view of the mandrel including a showing in broken lines of a spectacle frame having its bridge fitted to the mandrel.

Referring to the drawing, the elongated mandrel may be of spindle form and made of a suitable non-metallic or metallic material, as previously indicated. It is contemplated that the mandrel may be unsupported, or supported as from a wall or column surface in any suitable manner. Preferably I mount the mandrel in a manner such that when in use it may be projected outwardly from the wall to a position rendering accessible its graduated shaping extremity 10a, from which the mandrel is re- States Paten turnable to an out-of-the-way As illustrative, the mandrel may have a pivotal mounting in the form of a hinge, generally indicated at 11, one section 12 of which is secured to the wall, the other section 13 being received in the mandrel slot 14 within which the hinge is retained by screws 15.

The free end extent 10a of the mandrel is occupied by a series of bridge-shaping shoulders and recesses which desirably have substantially uniform vertical extent as viewed in the side elevation of Fig. 1, but which reduce progressively toward the end of the mandrel in their transverse dimensions. As Fig. 1 shows, the successive shoulder sections of the mandrel may be given numbers, such as the numerals 18 through 26 as shown, designating the standard bridge shapes and sizes to which the shoulders and recesses correspond. The bridge-receiving recesses 16 are formed by the intersection of beveled shoulders 17 and the top and side mandrel surfaces 18 between the shoulders. As Fig. 4 shows, the shoulders and bases of the recesses curve downwardly and outwardly and extend only part way about the mandrel, each shoulder merging into the smooth curved bottom surface of the mandrel.

The inter-shoulder mandrel surfaces 18 are inclined or tapered from the crests of shoulders 17 to the bases of the recesses 16, and preferably are given slight curvature with the degree of curvature increasing as the surfaces approach the lines 19 of intersection with the shoulders 17. The recesses formed by the intersecting shoulders and inclined surfaces accommodate the spectacle bridge 20 in predetermined and positively established shaping position when the bridge is pressed against the shoulder, and the sloping angularity of the surfaces 18, and its sharper curvature adjacent the base of the recess tends to reduce the tendency for the bridge to retract inadvertently from shouldered position.

As will be understood from the foregoing, the present device is not merely a gage for the measurement of preestablished sizes, but has been devised as a shaping instrument to variably adapt spectacle bridges to the requirements of different wearers. In varying the shapes, a plastic bridge (for example) to be deformed first is mildly heated as by placing it temporarily in a heated pan, containing hot salt. Being thus rendered deformable without danger of breaking, the bridge is then readily conformable to the shape of the selected mandrel recess by application thereto as in the position shown in Fig. 4.

I claim:

1. A spectacle bridge shaper for shaping different size spectacle nose bridges comprising an elongated mandrel formed to present a transverse curved shoulder defining with the mandrel surfaces beyond the shoulder a recess at the base of the shoulder, said surface being sloped relative to the mandrel axis toward said shoulder, and said recess corresponding in size and shape to a spectacle nose bridge.

2. A spectacle bridge shaper for shaping different size spectacle nose bridges comprising an elongated mandrel formed to present a transverse curved shoulder defining with the mandrel surfaces beyond the shoulder a recess at the base of the shoulder, said surface being tapered relative to the mandrel axis toward said shoulder and having slight curvature longitudinally of the mandrel, and said recess corresponding in size and shape to a spectacle nose bridge.

3. A spectacle bridge shaper comprising an elongated mandrel formed to present a transverse curved shoulder defining with the mandrel surfaces beyond the shoulder a recess at the base of the shoulder, said surface being sloped relative to the mandrel axis toward the shoulder and said shoulder having generally an inverted U-shape location adjacent the wall.

and terminating at the lower sides of the mandrel, and said recess corresponding in size and shape to a spectacle nose bridge.

4. A spectacle bridge shaper comprising an elongated mandrel adapted to be mounted horizontally and formed to present an inverted U-shaped shoulder extending transversely across the top and downwardly at the sides of the mandrel, to locations of terminal mergence with the mandrel surface, said shoulder defining with the top mandrel surface beyond the shoulder a bridge-receiving recess at the base of the shoulder and said top surface of the mandrel being sloped relative to the mandrel axis toward said shoulder.

5. A spectacle bridge shaper as defined in claim 4, in which said shoulder is beveled outwardly from its base.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,264,519 Hinson Apr. 30, 1918 1,636,473 Kelley July 19, 1927 1,728,041 Carroll Sept. 10, 1929 1,734,411 Welsh Nov. 5, 1929 2,499,032 Niblett Feb. 28, 1950 

